James Mangold Wants Creative Freedom in His Star Wars Movie, Unbound by Lucas’s Lore

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As a passionate cinephile, I’m thrilled about James Mangold‘s forthcoming “Star Wars” film. In a recent interview, he shared his sentiments, expressing a desire to avoid being too constrained by the established lore created by George Lucas. Instead, he aims to bring a fresh perspective to the galaxy far, far away.

The upcoming “Star Wars” film directed by James Mangold remains on track, officially set as a prequel detailing the origins of the Jedi Order.

James Mangold, director of “Indiana Jones and the Crystal of Fate”, has recently expressed his ideas and intentions for “Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi”. In a chat with Movie Web, Mangold shared that he aims to prioritize creative freedom, freeing himself from the weight of decades-old stories created by George Lucas.

According to him, what truly matters are the opportunities to create something unique, he stated. George Lucas’s narrative style for Star Wars was designed to be poetic, providing structure and richness. Contrarily, Mangold seems to want to break away from this conventional approach, aiming instead to introduce something fresh and original as he described it.

That’s why Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi is going to be a prequel.

Director James Mangold shared with Movie Web that the upcoming film is set far in the past, approximately thousands of years prior to the primary Star Wars narrative.

The director expressed that this location and playground have long been a place I’ve yearned to delve into,” he said. “It was an inspiration for me as a young person, and now, I find myself disenchanted with being bound by so much established history that seems almost unchangeable.” As for the film’s specific timeframe within the Star Wars universe, Mangold confirmed it is set 25,000 years before any other Star Wars movie.

In the Star Wars universe as depicted in Legends, that date is more commonly referred to as 25,000 years prior to the Battle of Yavin. This is also the year when the Jedi Order was established, according to Legends.

For dedicated Star Wars enthusiasts from the original series, particularly those who hold the Legends tales dear, this is a significant issue of discussion.

After Disney purchased Lucasfilm, Kathleen Kennedy announced that all previously published books and games in the Star Wars universe no longer held validity as part of its official storyline. This decision gave Kennedy and her team the freedom to create whatever they desired while still using the Star Wars brand and title.

In other words, goodbye, Shadows of The Empire and hello, The Acolyte.

Viewers often note that elements from abandoned Star Wars lore seem awkwardly included in the recent films, leading some to suspect that the latest movie may follow a similar pattern.

YouTuber Star Wars Apprentice gives a good example in his video explaining the origins of the Jedi Order:
“In Legends,” he says, “the Jedi Order evolved from a religious sect known as the Je’daii Order on the planet Tython. The Je’daii sought to find harmony between the light and dark sides of the Force.” He then explains how the light and dark scholars split to become the Jedi Order and the Sith. “This was then expanded on in the Star Wars: The Old Republic video game in 2011. But since the entire game was declared non-canon by Disney the following year, this was not the canon story for very long.”
A similar video from YouTuber Stupendous Wave expands on this point further:
“Story group leader of Lucasfilm, Pablo Hidalgo, discussed this,” he noted, “by saying, ‘I like the idea that Rey is going to be our Skywalker. But she’s not a Skywalker by blood. Then for our purposes the Skywalker [name] is really a metaphor. It doesn’t have to be something that’s directly connected to her bloodline.’”
“By this explanation,” the YouTuber continues, “the title of a Skywalker has now been canonically changed to mean something different than a family bloodline…. [It] now denotes someone as a protector of the balance of the Force…. This would mean, in fact, that the first Jedi that ever existed in Star Wars…was essentially the first Skywalker.”
This could be why the Rey movie was rumored to have “evolved” after Dawn of the Jedi was announced. If so, fans should expect the entire history of Star Wars to potentially be changed.
Raven Redgrave, AKA Writing Raven, is the co-host of the Gothic Therapy YouTube channel with her husband MasterOfTheTDS. The channel features a look at pop culture, entertainment, and gaming with insightful commentary, sharp critiques, and a dose of dark humor.

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2025-01-29 23:55